Claremont McKenna College’s Rose Institute will present feedback on Measure G plans
The Rose Institute of State and Local Government at Claremont McKenna College will present research on local perspectives on Los Angeles County governance reforms at the county’s Governance Reform Task Force (GRTF) meeting in Pasadena on June 10.
In November 2024, voters approved Measure G, the most sweeping reform to Los Angeles County government in more than a century. Among other provisions, Measure G will expand the county’s Board of Supervisors from five to nine members, establish a new elected office of County Executive, and create a new county ethics commission. The measure also established the 13-member GRTF to make recommendations on how the county can best implement the reforms.
Last year, the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation awarded the Rose Institute a grant to elevate local perspectives in Eastern LA County on Measure G. In partnership with the San Gabriel Valley City Managers Association, the Rose Institute has conducted in-depth interviews with nearly 30 city managers throughout the region, as well as supplemental research on intergovernmental relations in L.A. County and other counties around the nation.
Through interviews, Rose Institute researchers learned city managers have mixed views about the county reforms. When asked about specific changes, most said they approve the expansion of the Board of Supervisors from five to nine members. However, many city managers expressed concerns about the establishment of an elected County Executive. Several fear that electing the executive will politicize the office, create competing power centers in county government, and increase uncertainty about who cities will need to contact when doing business with the county.
Rose Institute Director Ken Miller, the lead researcher on the Measure G project and CMC’s Rose Professor of State and Local Government, said: “Cities will be essential to the successful implementation of Measure G. By bringing city perspectives into the implementation process, we hope to help the County achieve better outcomes. We also seek to inform cities about these major changes to county government.”
The Rose Institute is engaging in further discussions with a smaller group of city managers to develop concrete recommendations to the GRTF addressing these concerns. Early recommendations include urging the county to develop clear channels of communication between cities and the new elected County Executive and to actively engage cities in the transition process.
The meeting takes place on Wednesday, June 10, at 5 p.m., at Harambee Ministries, 1609 Navarro Avenue, in Pasadena. The agenda is available online: https://assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com/0234f496-d2b7-00b6-17a4-b43e949b70a2/aff70cef-ee26-4857-adde-aee513d13bc8/Rose_Inst_Measure_G_GRTF_Final.pdf
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About the Rose Institute of State and Local Government
The Rose Institute of State and Local Government was founded at Claremont McKenna College in 1973. A leading resource for information on California state and local governments, the Rose Institute pursues research projects on elections, government institutions, public opinion, and policy. It also maintains extensive state and local demographic, economic, and political databases. For more than 50 years, the Institute has fulfilled its mission to enhance the education of students at CMC, produce high quality research, and promote public understanding on issues of state and local government, politics, and policy, with an emphasis on California. For more information, visit roseinstitute.cmc.edu.
About Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College is a private, 1,300-student residential liberal arts college located east of Los Angeles in Southern California. Since 1946, the College’s mission has been to prepare students for thoughtful and productive lives and responsible leadership in business, government, and the professions. Renowned for its Open Academy commitments to freedom of expression, viewpoint diversity, and constructive dialogue, as well as expertise in economics and government, Claremont McKenna also features an accomplished faculty of scholars and committed teachers in the humanities, sciences, and social sciences. Students are drawn to the College’s unparalleled offerings, including 11 research institutes and centers; the ability to conduct research one-on-one with faculty; and access to leaders, artists, and visionaries who engage with students at the Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum. Claremont McKenna is a member of The Claremont Colleges. For more information, visit cmc.edu.
About the Haynes Foundation
The Haynes Foundation has been a force for change in the Los Angeles Region (comprised of the counties of Los Angeles, Ventura, San Bernardino, Riverside, and Orange) for over nine decades. The Foundation’s founders, Dr. John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes were passionate advocates of involved citizenship who believed that through social science research, the Foundation not only could identify critical social and political problems in Los Angeles but also offer solutions to them. The Foundation awards major research grants on governance and democracy in the Los Angeles region, archival grants, doctoral dissertation fellowships, and faculty fellowships. For more information, visit haynesfoundation.org.